Roundtrip Tour

Colorado and Utah: Red Rocks & Dinosaur Tracks

Florian Neuhauser

11 min read

At the beginning of 2023, Yamaha ran a sweepstakes promotion. A few lucky winners would get to go on a trip to Gateway, CO, to experience the Wolverine RMAX, their versatile UTV (or side-by-side) and the Ténéré 700 amidst the incomparable landscapes of the La Sal Mountains and the Uncompahgre National Forest. Since Yamaha would have two full demo trucks and staff there already, they were kind enough to invite some journalists for a quick two-day adventure as well. When the call came, I immediately said yes.

I then proceeded to juggle my calendar, moving another tour up a few days and accepting the fact that I’d spend my birthday on planes and in airports on the way back.

After successfully not embarrassing myself riding up that seemingly too-steep rock, I managed a little hop. Note to self: I must come back here often.

Once I landed in Grand Junction, I made my way down SR 141, also known as the Unaweep Tabeguache Scenic Byway. It’s difficult not to stare out of the window left and right with so much beauty. Living in North Carolina, I’m used to trees, not wide open and rocky landscapes. What a nice change. Everywhere I looked, I saw intrepid campers set up their tents, vans, and little RVs between the rocks to carve out a personal oasis for themselves.

The scenic surroundings kept getting more impressive as the miles rolled by until I arrived in little Gateway, a town with a population of a whopping 61. The whole of Mesa County only has 116,000 residents, so if you’re looking for space, this is it. Our base for the next few days would be Gateway Canyons Resort, famous for its Gateway Auto Museum. I had heard a rumor that the resort was for sale for $200 million, but nobody could confirm the amount.

Behind the doors of Gateway Auto Museum lie more than 50 automotive gems, like the one-of-a-kind 1954 Oldsmobile F-88 concept car that was acquired in 2005 for $3.25 million.

My shuttle driver on the way out claimed the price was $6 billion, though. Slightly higher, although he showed me just how much land the deal would include, with multiple horse ranches, houses, the resort, and—of course—the automobile museum with more than 50 vehicles, some of which are extremely rare. It’s the private collection of John Hendricks, the man who founded the Discovery Channel. Whatever the price, if you have to ask, you can’t afford it.